Englyn Roberts: Parents of California teen, 14, files lawsuit against Meta as she dies copying Instagram video

After their daughter, 14, committed herself after viewing an Instagram video of a "fake hanging," her parents are suing social media giant Meta. Englyn Roberts attempted to duplicate the video on August 2020, and her parents later discovered their daughter in her bedroom. The small girl was taken urgently to a hospital but was later declared dead. Toney and Brandy Roberts later learned that Robert's buddy had sent her an Instagram video of a lady "pretending to hang herself." Toney only began to comprehend what had happened after a whistleblower exposed Meta's sensitive and hazardous information, which was primarily targeting young girls and encouraging anorexia and self-harm, in 2021. Since then, according to the Daily Mail, a number of lawsuits have been brought against the internet giant on the grounds that it knew about the allegedly damaging information but did nothing to stop it. One of Roberts' classmates' parents texted Toney and Brandy to ask them to check on their child. "Toney stated to 60 Minutes, "We went upstairs and checked, and her door was locked. That seemed weird, so I took the key from the top and we opened the door, but no Englyn. I turned, and that's when I saw her." He claimed that what he seen left him speechless. According to reports, her parents felt guilty for not being aware of their daughter's difficulties. Roberts was discreetly blogging online about her issues with relationships, mental health, and self-worth. According to a complaint filed in San Francisco, she even started distributing material on self-harm, including the aforementioned video. Toney claimed that it was only after the release of internal documents by former Facebook employee Frances Haugen that he fully comprehended what had happened to his daughter. The documents claimed that the tech company was largely aware of its detrimental social and mental effects and that it also encouraged eating disorders, particularly in young girls. The app indicated that 32% of females said Instagram made them feel worse about their bodies if they already have issues, according to Daily Mail, which cited a statement posted on an internal bulletin board in the company in March 2020. Toney stated: "You wonder how she came up with this concept. Then, when I completed the research, I discovered it. On Instagram, she noticed it. She had a phone with it."

"If they so-call monitor and do things how could it stay on that site? Part of their policies says they don't allow for self-harm photos, videos, things of that nature. So who's holding them accountable?" Toney said.